January 03

 

January 02

 

The BOOK – Mobilizing Army

When you start reading the book of Joshua, we see Israel right on the border of the land of promise, near the banks of the Jordan. Joshua is the leader of the Children of Israel now and we hear God saying, “Moses my servant is dead. Now then, you and all these people, get ready to cross the Jordan River” – Joshua 1:2. Joshua stands with bowed head and a lonely heart, for his wise counsellor and friend has gone. 

Moses had to die before the children of Israel could go into Canaan. Israel had to wait until Moses was out of the way. To the Christians, we need to understand the theology behind this scene. Moses represents the Law. Joshua represents Christ. Christ alone can lead us into the inheritance that is ours. 

“Not by works, so that no one can boast” – Ephesians 2:9

Christ wants to lead us into what he has purchased on the cross for us. Overall it takes Moses and Joshua together to present to us typically the finished work of Christ.

God called Joshua to lead the children of Israel into the Promised Land and gave him confidence. “As I was with Moses, so I will be with you; I will never leave you not forsake you” Joshua 1:5. Joshua sent men through the camp to tell them that in three days they would cross the Jordan, and be prepared for the journey (Joshua 1:10-11)

There are some promises God gave to Joshua which we can see in Joshua 1.

·         Joshua 1:3 – Every place that the sole of your foot I shall tread upon, that I have I given unto you, as I said unto Moses.

·         Joshua 1:4 – From the wilderness and this Lebanon even unto the great river, the river Euphrates, all the land of the Hittites, and unto the great sea towards the going down of the sun, shall be your coast.

·         Joshua 1:2 – Arise, go over this Jordan, thou, and all this people, unto the land which I do give to them, even to the children of Israel.

·         Joshua 1:8 – This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein; for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success.

·         Joshua 1:11 – Prepare you victuals; for within three days, ye shall pass over this Jordan, to go in to possess the land, which the Lord your God giveth you to possess it. 

Joshua’s Bible was the book of Law. Our Bible is far more complete and we know more about God’s will because Christ has interpreted it for us. Some answers you will get in Joshua 1:7. Do we meditate upon the word? Do we turn from it to the right or to the left? “Only be thou strong and very courageous, that thou mayest observe to do according to all the law, which Moses my servant commanded thee; turn not from it to the right hand or to the left, that thou mayest prosper whitherso-ever thou goest”

We can see the story of Rahab, a prostitute who stood with the children of Israel and hided the two scouts who went to bring the report of the land. When Israel went to capture the capture Jericho, Rahab hung a scarlet cord out of her window so that her house might be marked and spared. This woman is being mentioned in the genealogy of Jesus.

Sons of Ham, who is the Son of Noah, were the descendants of Canaan. Since they were wicked and idolatrous people, God warned them in destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah. But they did not change and now God is going to destroy their power and give their land to the Israelites. 

As Christians, people won’t know the importance of relationship between Christ and his followers. They indulge in cheating, taking bribes, adultery, fornication, drinking and flirting as they think they should imitate the world. But always be careful. God called us to be his children, when Israelites were against him. Israelites thought they are his chosen ones and they can do anything, and finally God gave then punishment. Now days, this is the same attitude we see in Christians. They believe through grace Christ made them their children and so they can do anything. Be careful, because God can leave you and call the unsaved, Muslims, Hindus, Sikhs and Buddhist people and reveal himself to them and take them along with him to eternity.

I pray that as mentioned in Joshua 1:7, you live with the word of God and stay holy as he is holy, Amen.

The BOOK – Looking Back

As the book of Deuteronomy opens, we see Israel on the border of the land of Canaan, in a place where eleven days journey, some forty years before, could have brought them. We marvel at Israel’s slowness. We like them, are kept back by unbelief many times and because of that we lose the blessing on time. But God is a faithful teacher. He never lets us pass on to another grade until we are ready.

God never fails us when we put our trust in him, but he will not do many mighty works because of our unbelief. “And he did not do many miracles there because of their lack of faith” – Mathew 13:58.

We can see, in Deuteronomy God is putting before the children of Israel the conditions of their entering and holding the land. We can see all these conditions summed up in one great word – Obedience. The children of Israel entered the Promised Land under the Conditions of Law. In the first four books if Pentateuch, God is choosing Israel. Now he is letting Israel choose him. There will be certain times in our life, when we are in pit and God will take us from that and put us in high, and gives us a chance to choose between world and him, or between lust /power/greed and him. 

Besides Moses, only Joshua and Caleb were left from the generation that had come out of Egypt. The younger generation would have suffered in wilderness, but Moses recites them the law before entering the land. Moses knew his work is done as God chose another leader to lead his people to the land. We should always know that we have our role to play in life. Once our role is over, someone else will take our role. Our role may me small or big. Instead of comparing our roles with others, better to understand ours and work hard and run our race fast to be part of the Kingdom. 

Since it was Moses farewell address to Israel, he recalls the history of Israel and their wanderings. He reminds them to be faithful and urges them to be grateful and obedient. He spoke to the people in the most earnest and eloquent way and appealed them to serve and obey God. You can study leadership from this man. He spent forty years of his life in delivering the people from bondage of Egypt, in guiding them through the many dangers that confronted them. He trained them, gave them forms of government, laws, and religious institutions and molded them into a nation. Each and every one God called is leaders and you should examine your leadership qualities with respect with that of Moses. 

For the people of Israel, it was like an adult graduating and going to enter upon their life’s work. They studied what God wants to tell them throughout this journey. Now they need to implement that faith and possess the land. This is the reason why a believer should study the word of God. You cannot claim that you know the word of God fully. But each and every time you read it and study it, you will become more mature in life and you see the world different than a worldly person sees. You will get separated from the lust and power of the world and you will work hard for the glory of God in serving others and use your talents and develop it for Gods glory.

I pray that God enables you to lead a leadership life of that of Moses in guiding the people around you to victory in life through Christ Jesus. Amen.

The BOOK – Second Law

In this book, Deuteronomy, God is telling us through Moses to be doers of the word, and not hearers only. This is an important book for us to study about the blessings and curses. Just recently I read a book on Blessings and Curses by Derek Prince which was based on this word from God. This book shows the blessings of obedience and the curse of disobedience. 

This book shows blessings which depends on obedience – life, possession of Promise Land, Victory over foes, prosperity and happiness. This book is also a collection of the orations and songs of Moses he gave as a farewell to Israel.  Moses once again reminds the people what God had done to them and what they were to do to server God when they reach the promise land.

This is the last of the five books written by Moses, called “Pentateuch”, meaning five books. Genesis tells the beginning of the chosen nation, Exodus relates the people to a nation and gives law, Leviticus tells the way the people were to worship God, Numbers gives the story of the their wanderings and Deuteronomy relates the final preparation for entering the Promised Land. Of course Moses was the writer, but not the author of Pentateuch. It is the Lord who is the author. 

We can find this book of obedience being a weapon for Christ Jesus when faced with the devil. (Mathew 4:1-11, Luke 4:1-13, Deuteronomy 8:3, 6:16, 6:13 and 10:20). As for a Christian, this book leads him the same way he reads and understands the Epistles, which will help him grow spiritually if he practises it. 

People don’t like to hear or no one wants to be told he or she is a sinner. I have seen people who sins, have a great explanation – through grace we are saved. Yes, we are saved by grace through Christ Jesus. But once you are Christ’s it is your duty to do good and remain faithful. For leading a Spirit-filled life, this book helps a person march ahead to reach the promise Land and serve God.

May God Bless you.

The BOOK – On to Canaan

The Ultimate aim for what God rescued Israel from Egypt was to send them to Canaan. After all the wanderings, from Numbers 20 to 36, the scene is they are near to Canaan. Now we find that all the Israelites who left Egypt had died except Moses, Aaron, Joshua, Caleb, Miriam and the Children who were under 20 years of age when the spies entered the land. Now they camped in Kadesh and Miriam, Moses sister died and Aaron, Moses brother also died. 

When they started from Egypt, the promise God gave was for their best. But because of their murmurings and sin, now God gave them the second best. God is kind and he sets before us another way, a second best, or it may even be a third, for his mercy is wonderful. He forgives us seventy times seven. Even if we are not faithful, he is faithful.

Even after almost reaching the Promised Land the chosen people were complaining. In Numbers 20 and 21 we see people grumbling and God sending venomous snakes among the people, which caused them suffering and death. Once they confessed their sin, Moses prayed for them for deliverance, but God did not take away the snakes. God told Moses to make a bronze snake and fasten it to a pole so that all could see it. As soon as they looked they lived (Numbers 21: 6-9).

The Bible reveals us that whole human family has felt the ancient serpent’s sting of sin, which means death. The only way people can live is by looking to the one who took upon himself the likeness of a human and was lifted up on the cross to take the sting of death upon him. 

The bottom line is the world is full of sin and the penalty of sin is death, Spiritual death along with physical death. But if we look on him, Christ, our saviour, we shall live, even after physical death. 

“Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the wilderness, so the son pf man must be lifted up, that everyone who believes may have eternal life in him” – John 3: 14, 15.

The Promise Kept

In the Holy Bible you can see the Almighty God blessing Abraham. “Abraham will surely become a great and powerful nation, and all nations on earth will be blessed through him” – Genesis 18: 18. Usually when a priest comes for praying, he uses to include this verse in prayer for us. But the blessings from the mighty God remains perfect and no one can overcome it. Now after almost 3000 years after the blessings, you can see how the world is blessed through the descendants of Abraham.

 

Was Abraham an Israelite? This question is simply an idiotic question. Abraham was not an Israelite. Israelites were the real descendants of Abraham. Abraham’s grandson is called Israel. Abraham’s son inherited the true blessing from him and he gave the same blessing to Jacob, which Jacob got it through wrong way. But blessing will not be erased by God, and so his blessings got inherited to his children, the Israelites, since God changed his name Israel. “God said to him, your name is Jacob, but you will no longer be called Jacob; your name will be Israel. So he names him Israel” – Genesis 35: 10.

The inventions that changed the modern world are from Jews. The laser beam which works in DVD or for treatments was invented by a Jew. The life saver for heart patients, the pacemaker was developed by a Jew. The stainless steel vessels we use in kitchen, we should give thanks for a Jew who invented stainless steel. Albert Einstein, the man who made the formula Mass-Energy equivalence is also a Jew. The vaccines for Cholera, Polio and other plagues are being developed by Jews. The father of Atomic Bomb, Nuclear invention is a Jewish American. You can search in the google site for the list of inventions Jewish people have done, which through the world is blessed.

What more to say. Each and every one who use internet knows to search anything through Google. This same google was founded by Larry Page and Sergey Brin while the pair was attending Stanford University. Both these people, the founders are Jewish.

Still the person who does not considers the valid document from God, the Bible, is an idiot who is being trapped by the devil. All blessings and promises God have given to Israel is fulfilled and the world is witnessing it.

Same as stated in the Bible, the book of Isaiah and Jeramiah, Israel was torn by their enemies 2000 years ago. But the same God promised that he will set up Israel before his second coming. “The God of heaven will set up a kingdom that will never be destroyed, nor will it be left to another people” – Daniel 2: 44. For the last 68 years, the Arab countries which are around Israel tried to destroy them. But the creator of Heaven and Earth, as he promised gathered back the Jews and is protecting them from these nations which are against them. When war happens between Israel and other Arab nations, miracles happens as God miraculously protects his chosen children. Whenever a war happened, the causality from the side of Israel will be much less than from the other side, and more than that, this small state of Israel would have conquered the enemy territories most areas also.

“And I will make you a great nation, And I will bless you, And make your name great; And so you shall be a blessing; And I will bless those who bless you, And the one who curses you I will curse And in you all the families of the earth will be blessed” – Genesis 12: 2-3.

Prophet Isaiah who prophesised about Jerusalem’s fall also told that when God gathers Israel back, God himself will reign on Jerusalem with great glory. You can see how he is protecting Israel from the terrorist’s nearby them. For the last 8 years Hamas, the terriost organization are firing rockets on Jewish soil, but God is protecting them by providing wisdom to counter attack it. Even sometimes he is changing the direction of the rocket to the sea – testimony by the Hamas itself.

Oh I get excited when I read about what is happening in Israel and how God is ruling them. Even though they don’t accept Christ as their saviour, God is favouring them since he promised it. The God who created the heaven and Earth, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, the God who says he is who he is, is real and one day I have to face him for sure. It is a matter of decision if I need to be with him, or go away from him. If I want to be with him, simply accept Christ as my saviour and confess my sins and live holy. Other case is simply for my own destruction.

The choice is for you to take.